TheCable

Uba Sani, governor of Kaduna, has warned criminal elements to desist from selling forms to residents who want to benefit from palliatiaves distributed by the state.

The governor issued the warning on Friday in a statement by Muhammad Shehu, his spokesperson.

Sani urged residents of the state to contact their local government secretariats for information on the processes to be captured in the state social register to avoid falling victims to fraudsters.

“I categorically condemn this unwholesome act by the criminal elements in our midst and members of the public are hereby informed that there are no forms on sale under any guise for palliatives or social register,” Sani said.

“Kaduna state governor is committed to ensuring that the palliatives get to the true beneficiaries, to achieve this feat.

“The governor set up the palliatives committee in July 2023 to come up with modalities for the distribution, the committee has since been lauded as highly inclusive.”

He added that respresentatives of the committee included the Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, other members of Organised Labour, religious and traditional leaders, civil society organisations, persons with disabilities, local government chairmen, youth and women groups.

“The Kaduna state social register is the database of poor and vulnerable households in the state, and this register is utilised to identify beneficiaries of targeted social protection programmes and other interventions from the government,” he added.

In August, Sani had said over a million vulnerable people in the state would benefit from the first phase of the palliatives funds to be expeneded on food items, transport and support to farmers.

The governor said the N2 billion released to the state by the federal government would be spent in three phases.

He said food items would be distributed in the first phase of the exercise, while the second stage would support smallholder farmers, including small and medium-sized business owners.

He added that the third stage would be on easing transportation for the residents.